Tuesday, November 22, 2016

Good afternoon Y'all!!!! Is it cool where y'all are? It is in my neck of the woods and I LOVE it!!! There may be some hope of my sweat glands going into hibernation after all!!!! hahahaha Yes, indeedie there may be hope!!!! Today is the 22nd and yesterday morning it was 18 hot degrees where I live and the high was 37!!!! Just about cool enough for the polar bear dip. hahahaha Well, you won't see me anywhere doing the polar bear dip, but if you see me out and about, I will definitely be enjoying the cool brisk air. It's beginning to feel like fall. Some of the trees that held on tightly to their leaves during all the hot and dry days of a few weeks ago, have some lovely color now. The ginko trees that line the streets of my fair city was the most amazing golden yellow yesterday. The leaves were gently falling against the slight breeze and falling to the ground making a fluffy yellow pillow just directly under the trees. It was a most lovely sight. There are also some maple trees that were a spectacular yellow orange and those leaves too, were dancing on the air as the slight breeze caused them to take flight for the short trip to the ground. Only God can paint a picture as lovely as what I was fortunate to see yesterday. Those are some of the sights that I listed in my 30 Days of Praise. I bet y'all have some fantastic sights too, that could be listed in your 30 Days of Praise.

Well, the election is over and the sun came up the next day, just like most of us figured it would. Like it or lump it, we have a new and very different president to what we have had in a very long time. Time will tell about his legacy to the office, just as it does to every president. I exercised my right to vote as a proud American citizen. I was fortunate and blessed to be born on American soil. I have family members in past generations who fought, bled and died to make sure that this great land remains the "home of the brave and land of the free". Most Americans can say the same thing. I seen a picture this morning on the internet of two females standing on the American Flag with one arm raised in some gesture, basically thumbing their noses at what the flag stands for. The reason I use the word "female" is because it would have been a disgrace to all the ladies and women that I have great respect for. It was bad enough referring to them as females.

To those two females I say, "If you don't like this country, hit the road!!! But I guarantee you will not find a free hand out in any other country on the face of the globe like you have here, and if you need help in buying a one way ticket from this great land, just holler, I'll toss a few pennies at you. Better yet, just save some of your government hand out money and buy it yourself." I know that doesn't sound like something that should be coming from a Christian, but there was things in scripture that actually made Jesus mad, He never sinned though. Those same two females have the right desecrate the Bible too. Americans fought and died for them to have the right to stand on the American flag and make a mockery of it. Yeshua, Jesus Christ laid down His life for them to spit on Him and take His name in vain.

A lot of people said that if the election went a certain way, they were leaving this country. They may have been here illegally anyway, I don't know. But I do remember those same words being said 16 years ago. I kept praying for this great wooshing sound of all of those hollywood elitists who had said they were leaving, but alas, it never happened. So, I guess it will still be the same thing. All that talk, just getting my hopes up only to be let down again. hahaha They will never leave because they know they have a GRAVY train here. Might not be that way where ever else they would go, so we are stuck with them. And all the sports figures that think they are too good to stand at attention when the anthem is being sung or salute the flag; strap a military rifle over your shoulder and go to foreign soil and stand beside a real American hero that is being shot at for about 15 seconds. I guarantee you will be ready to salute the flag and stand at attention when the anthem is being sung. I do not care what anyone's salary is, but I will say this, we put far too much money in the pockets of the sports figures and actors and far too little in pockets of the real American heroes. The men and women who are risking their lives to keep females standing on the flag safe, to keep sports jerks er jocks safe, and all the high and might perverted actors, apers and mimicers are too selfish to even say "Thank You" to our real American heroes! Just sayin'.

We have what we would classify as "heroes" mixed up. No sports figure should EVER be classified as a hero. Just what have they done to be considered a hero? Then I will tell them about my father, my uncles, my cousins, my many ancestors putting their lives in harms way to protect all they freedoms that they trash. My opinion. But our military men and women should be seen as brave patriots who have put their lives on the line, not only for our country, but for other countries across the globe. One of my best friends son in law is on foreign soil right now, let me tell you, he is my hero!!!!! I pray for him and his safety and I also pray that he will be able share Yeshua, Jesus Christ with those he comes in contact with. Oh, and thank you so much to all the Veterans and active service men and women who have put yourself in harms way for me and every other American and most of the people on planet. Thank you for your service!!!!!! God Bless you!!!!

I also pray for the respect of the "office" of President of the United States of America to become what it used to be. You don't necessarily have to hold the person in that position in high regard, but the office itself should be held in high regard. The President of the United States should never be bowing to another leader!!! Just sayin'!!! That is what I was taught growing up. I do realize that times have changed, said sarcastically. You see, most people have little to no respect for themselves, so why show respect for anyone else, much less show respect for the title of an office. You can't show something you don't have, such as respect. When people live lives of entitlement, they loose respect for themselves and for others. The females standing on the flag was not showing respect for them selves, why or how could they show respect to the flag. They had never been taught self respect. I promise you they hadn't. Sports figures live lives of entitlement. Hollywood elitists live lives of entitlement, therefore no respect for themselves or the common folk. All the women standing on the flag, and the sports "roids", and actors and mimicers want is your money. It's getting close to Christmas, so give them your money if you so choose, "but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord".

On to some better and more "funner" stuff now. hahaha I am in a small yahoo group and we are doing Christmas tags for everyone that wanted to share the fun and use them to decorate our Christmas Trees in our crafting rooms. Since I am not putting a tree up in my craft spot, I am going to put a swag across the fireplace and use small clothespins to clip them to the swag. I made 13 for the swap. One to keep and 12 to send on to the others in the swap. Since our trees are not really large, the tags were to be on the smallish side, not to small, but not too large either.

I had a slight interruption just now and thought I would share it. Hubby is doing some paperwork and he needed several pieces of info, with our marriage certificate being one. I took time to get it and he copied it and when he handed it back to me, he said, "here is this little piece of gold." I took it and smiled because he could not have said anything more perfect than that! 37 years later and he still calls that piece of paper a "piece of gold"! I got one of the good ones, praises be to Yahweh!!!!!

Back to the tags, ggg, I used 140 lb water color paper. Started with my Lindsay Stamp Gang sprays and I don't know how many colors I used, but lots of different colors.

This was almost the most fun part. Just spritzing and spraying with all different colors.

I forgot to take pictures of the process, but this is the tags finished all but the hanger loops.

It was a stamp set of a snow globe and two or three different scenes and I chose the snowy deer scene. I stamped the deer scene first and then the snow globe.

I colored each little scene and then I took my Uni Signo white pen and added some snow and highlights. I just love how the background turned out, each one was different.

When I was done with all the stamping, I then used clear wink of stella to add shimmer to the sky portion of the globe and then to add some twinkling highlights on the base. Then I took my flat colored shell pieces and made a small pool of glue and place a shell piece in it and sprinkled fine glitter over it and let it dry and then shook off the excess glitter. Glitter....woohoo!!!! To finish up the tags, I used my structure paste that has sand and gold glitter in it around the edge of the tag. Glitter.....woohoo!! Sorry, I got carried away. hehehe These are fun little tags and I had a blast making them. I hope the ladies that get them are happy with them also. As a final touch, I printed off a list of what all I done to them and glued it to the backside. Then I signed then and dated them and they are ready to pop in the mail as soon as I get them in the envelopes. It was a fun project.

As I was reading Scripture this morning, this verse was a verse for the day. Proverbs 15:30 The light of the eyes rejoices the heart, and good news refreshes the bones. What is one of the first things that you notice about a person? For me, it most usually is the eyes. The eyes tell a lot about a person. We all know that. If you see sparkles in someones eyes and their eyes are wide open, you can see that their heart rejoices. You may not even know what the situation of their lives is, but they have the light in their lives that reflect the joy in their hearts. That joy is a reflection of the their Messiah, Jesus Christ!!!! What about good news? Have you ever been down in the dumps about something and then tells you some good news? Wow, doesn't that refresh deep down to the bones? Oh my, yes it does, it is just as refreshing as a cool drink of water! Good news can put a pep in your step. It can make you stand just a wee bit taller. It can make you breathe a little deeper and take more refreshing breaths of air. Good news just makes you feel good!!! What about the Good News of Yeshua, Jesus Christ, that is the BEST news!!! Does that make you feel good? It should. Christ Jesus came for the common, for the lowest of the low, He came for everyone!!!! He came for the shepherds! And not just for the wealthy, not just for the kings and princes of this age, but for the widow who gave all she had! He came for the females that stood on the flag! He came for the sports people who praise themselves for how good they are! He came for the apers, actors, and mimicers who put themselves on a pedestal! He came for all those who are out for vengeance on Christ followers! He came for the scientists who try to disprove Him! He came for the atheists who deny His existence! He came for those who try to tack "works of the flesh" to the plan of salvation! He came for all of us who have been lost in our sin and drowning in a cesspool of messed up lives! He came for those who are hurting from the loss of loved ones! He came for those who are dealing with messed up lives right now!

I don't know about you, but I am so THANKFUL beyond measure that Yeshua, Jesus Christ loved me enough to lay His earthly life down for me in such a harsh, hurtful and painful manner. Yes, He could have called 10,000 angels, but praise Yahweh that He did not!!!! He was obedient to the call of His Father to the point of saying, "not my will but Yours be done". And it was done! And now our eyes can shine and show the joy in our hearts for what He has done for us!! And now our bones can feel refreshed as we walk with a new pep that we didn't have. If you have recognized the sin in your life, repented and asked forgiveness for your sin and asked Messiah to be Lord and Savior of your life then this particular verse should speak loudly and clearly to you. Good News is always refreshing!!!! Yeshua is always refreshing. I hope you know the joy of the refreshing of Christ Jesus this Thanksgiving!!!!

I hope and pray that everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving Day!!!! Take the time to name on each finger something or someone you are thankful for. Let the people know that you named them as someone you are thankful for. I am thankful for all the people that I have been fortunate enough to cross paths with. Some are people I have met physically, but a lot are people I have never met personally, but we have met through the great internet invention. That includes all of you who read this. Just know that I am truly grateful for each and every visit that you take the time to make. Thanks and Happy Turkey Day and eat a bite of dressing for me. hehehe gobble gobble gobble

Gobble till you wobble!!!!!! Or maybe not, hahaha!!!!

Remember God loves you!!! Till we back meet here again, I love you too!!! Have an awesome day! hugs and love, Patty

Thursday, November 3, 2016

Well, it seems as if another month is behind us and we are well on our way into November and we are moving right along. WHAT!!! Yeah, that's right November is here and it is a beauty so far. The weather in my neck of the woods is kinda like a late Spring day. Fresh and bright with all kinds of possibilities. But, as I said, it is November, so we never know what it will bring. Last year, we had our first snow fall in November. hahaha If you don't like the weather right now, just wait 15 minutes, it will change. So, I will take the beautiful weather and be thankful for it. And since this is November, the month that we celebrate Thanksgiving here in the United States of America, there is a common phrase now that you will hear in some churches. "30 days of Praise". That is just taking the time every day to thank Yahweh, God for something He has done for us. That should be one of the easiest things we have ever done!!! I bet each and every one of us could come up with a hundred things or more in the time it takes to take one breath. We each have so much to be thankful for!!!! I know for myself, I fail to be as thankful as I should be, a lot of the time. So much that I do take for granted, and for that I do have to ask for forgiveness. And right now, during this particular season of thankfulness and happiness, I know for a fact that a lot of people are hurting. So, I would ask that during this time we all remember to pray for those whom we know are dealing with a great deal of hurt. I have friends who have lost loved ones and it's always a sad time to go thru the holidays with the freshness of loss. Friends are dealing with sickness and surgeries and job loss and friends who are watching loved ones struggling in a battle for their earthly lives. Neighbors who are hurting, silently. Oh, we know so many that have pain, in some form or another, just pushing thru the days, alone. I ask myself sometimes, what if I was dealing with this or that, would I want anyone to know? The simple fact of the matter is that we are all dealing with something. We all need prayer and we all need to pray for one another. So, let's make it "30 days of Praise and Prayer".

These early fall days remind me of back when all my brothers and I was still at home. Mom would fix the most delectable Thanksgiving Dinner ever!!!!! She makes the best dressing ever and I do believe that it is possible for my brothers and I to get physical over her dressing!!!! hahahaha "Oh, yes I WILL stick my fork in the back of your hand if you touch my plate!!!!!" hahahaha No, not that drastic, but just about!!!! One year in particular, some of the guys had their girlfriends at the house for Thanksgiving dinner. (Where I come from, dinner is the noon day meal, with supper being the last meal.) So, after dinner and after mom and I getting the kitchen cleaned up after the small army, all my brothers and their girlfriends and I got together and we went to a place in Butler County called Split Rock. The owner of the farm where Split Rock was located would let us go to the rock. It was just a HUGE rock out in a rocky hilly area of his farm. It looked kinda outta place. It's the size of a house for sure. But it is split right down the middle. And of course, we all had to squeeze thru the split!!!!! Young and stupid is what comes to mind today!!!!! But, back then it was the thing to do. If you went to Split Rock and squeezed your way thru, you had arrived!!!! Where, to the other side of the rock! hahahaha Not only were we young and stupid, but we were also young and slim, so we could do it back then, but I don't know if any one of us could squeeze thru the rock now or not. And I am talking about REALLY squeezing thru that Split Rock!!! You had to suck in, really suck in to get thru a place or two!!! Oh my gosh, how stupid was I to even think about doing that!!!! I almost get the hives just thinking about it now. hahaha

One of the things that I am thankful for is cell phones with cameras. Why, you ask? Because if I would have had one 40 years ago I'm pretty sure I would have some cool pictures of us squeezing thru that rock!!! I would probably have pictures of all the times we went fishing in the summers and put fish in the freezer for future meals. There would be pictures of my grandparents coming off the hill, riding in their mule drawn wagon going to Jesse's Store for feed. There would be pictures of going to the farm where the sorghum was being "freshly" made, ohhh yummy!!!! There would be pictures of us swinging on great vines in the trees behind the house!!! There would be pictures of us catching june bugs, grasshoppers, lightening bugs, and scooping up tadpoles. I would have tons of pictures of all the fun visits to our grandparents houses. There would be pictures of all the cars that used to sit out in our parents driveway. At any given time, there could be 10 or more and then when my brothers started getting married, the vehicles thinned out a little. I remember one time, a neighbor stopped just to see what was wrong because there was so many cars at the house, he thought maybe someone had died. No, it was just Thanksgiving and everyone was there and there was about 14 or 15 cars in the driveway and yard. There would be pictures of us romping thru the woods, picking blackberries, shucking corn, skinning squirrels and rabbits. There would be pictures of all the clothes lines full of clothes for 8 people and what ever else that was washed that week. There would be pictures of us playing basketball down in the lot or softball in the back field. There would pictures of the many many cookouts that we had. There would be pictures of us climbing trees and maybe even one or two of some falling out of trees, hehehe. There would probably be a video or two of one of my brothers cracking up laughing!!! When he did that, you knew someone was hurt!!! I don't think he meant to be laughing at someone hurt, that was just what he did. He will still laugh about it today. There would a picture or two with someone having their tongue stuck, frozen, to the car with the school bus coming up the road!!!! Yes, that happened!!!! Why do people do that? Who knows, but people still do it. There would be pictures of all the Saturday afternoons when my brothers and their friends would skeet shoot all afternoon. There would be pictures of my brothers coming in from work with the local farmers, and oh how nasty they would be! But they learned a work ethic that still sticks with each one of them to this day. There would be pictures of them out in the yard and driveway taking care of their first set of wheels, washing, waxing, and shining up those cars!!!! There would probably a picture or two of some of the fights that took place......just sayin'. Keepin' it real and all that!!! hahahaha Oh there would be all kinds of pictures. There are some pictures of some of the fun stuff that I mentioned and they are to be cherished for sure. I sure am thankful for all the good memories and there are so many more. Just like I know that all of y'all have great memories too. It's fun to take the trip down memory lane every once in a while and just be THANKFUL!!!

I am so thankful for all the many forms of crafting and arting that is available to us today! I am thankful for the types of media that we have that let us watch others crafting in real time!!!! Would you have thought that we could do that 40 years ago? I would have said "No way!!" But, yes way, we can do it and we do it all the time. Would you have ever believed that this great big world would become so small that people from all over the world can watch at the same time in real time and converse with each other while watching? Well, that's what we can do now, and a lot of us do just that. How fun is that? We live in a day and age of instant gratification, don't we. I try not to take all the good stuff for granted, but I know I do sometimes. It is totally fantastic that we can find any technique imaginable just by googling!!! hahaha No one even asks what "google" is anymore, it's such a commonplace word now. Oh, do you remember the phrase, "do you yahoo"? and the goofy music and singing that accompanied that commercial? Now we don't even think twice when we hear a new word, we just automatically know that more than likely it's referring to the google-net. hahaha I just know that if I want to learn a new way of arting or learn something new, all I have to do is go to the computer or tablet or cell phone and the world is at my finger tips. I love to get in my craft room and turn on the tv to you tube and find some of my favorite peeps and just have a great time crafting with my friends while I am having a good time crafting myself. Who knew we would be able to do that? I don't know about you, but I am thankful for all the many forms of technology that we have that makes our crafting and arting more fun and brings friends from across the world right into our homes, via the the google-net!

I have been making some Sculpy clay pieces that I will turn into pins. I have them painted thus far. I just used watercolor paints with shimmer in them. Just a real cheap set that you can get at Joann's for sure, and possibly some of the other stores. I forget off hand what brand they are, but I will just take a spray bottle and spray all the paints till I get them really wet and just start using colors, all different colors and blending in a little bit. I love the looks of the swirling shimmery colors and when I get finished with them and get the clear coat on, aka...clear nail polish, they will really shine and just be beautiful.

These crosses are a red rubber stamp on a wooden block. I roll out the clay with a little plastic roller that I got a wal mart in the cake decorating area and it has two different depths of spacers on it and I just roll to the deepest depth and then stamp into the clay and gently remove the stamp and then take a tool used to lift cut pieces off of a mat. It has a semi sharp edge and it slices right thru the clay nicely. I just go around it slicing away clay till I get it to look the way I want it to look. Then I just have to wait for it to air dry, that's the hardest part, for sure.

The little Jesus fish is done the exact way. It is a clear polymer stamp on a clear block, but it works exactly the same way. I just try to get a good image and then get the stamp lifted off nicely.

Once they have dried sufficiently, then I start coloring. I use water colors because some of the other types of paints will build up to the point that it fills the groves of the image and it looses the crisp image. So I will use my cheap water colors watered down heavily, I mean really thin. The thinner the better, because that means I can get more layers and colors on it. That is the fun part!!! Then I have to let them dry again.

I also press out sculpy real flat and take an embossing folder and press that into the clay. That is really nice. I love that. But, I do have a hard time keeping the shape once I get the image pressed into it. I know I have a small set of cookie cutters around here, hiding somewhere, and if I can find them, then I can use them to get uniform shapes.

I call this jewelry rustic. It's not meant to look like it comes from the assembly line. I want it to look like each piece was made individually, because they actually are.

When these get really dry, I will put a final coat of nail polish or glossy accents or some other clear shiny finish and then glue the pin back on they will be done! woohoo!!!

These are the little fisheys, I just love them!!! They are easy to put on and not really big, where as the cross is pretty big, but I really enjoy both of them.

This is the size of them compared with an ink pen. They are about a little over an inch. I wish you could see them in the hand because the colors are just so vibrant and shimmery. woohoo!!!

As I leave you this evening, let me ask you, "what are you thankful for"? I know you are like me and you have much to be thankful for. Do you thank Yahweh for all that you have to be thankful for? Lets take the time this season to be purposefully thankful and thank Him during this "30 Days of Praise". When we take the time to be purposeful, we will be more likely to remember to be thankful. When we thank Yahweh in all the small things all the time, then it will become easier to be thankful during the tough circumstances of our lives. We have to start somewhere, so start with the small things and then it won't be long till you will find yourself being thankful in the tougher times. Paul teaches us with our prayers and supplications to be thankful in all circumstances and situations. Paul had learned to be thankful in all his life situations, whether in chains or free, even with his thorn in the flesh, he learned to be thankful in all situations. I hope and pray that during the "30 Days of Praise" that we can learn to find all kinds of ways to tell Yahweh that we are thankful to Him for His grace and mercy and thankful that He has provided a way for you to be in right relationship with Him thru Yeshua, Christ Jesus.

I hope and pray that y'all have a wonderful night of refreshing sleep and rest and that you awake in the morning ready to start a day filled with thankfulness. Tell someone tomorrow that you are thankful for them. They will be happy to hear such sweet words. Let me start right now by telling y'all that I am thankful for each and every one of y'all. I appreciate your visits with me and I love your comments. So, till we meet again, right back here, Yahweh loves y'all and so do I!!!! hugs and love, Patty

About Me

I am a Christian, first and foremost. Not perfect, by the worlds standards, by any means, just washed in the Blood of Jesus Christ!! I have been married to my wonderful husband for 38 years. I thank God for him every day of my life. I look forward to the next 38 years with my hubby! God has blessed me with some wonderful Christian ladies in my life to help me stay grounded and focused. I love them and I always enjoy spending precious time with them.

I have been crafting ever since I can remember. I learned to count with buttons from my Mom's button jar. So, I come from a long line of crafters. Back in the day, it was "making do with what you have", now we call it "crafting". ggg What ever you call it, it's fun.

I dedicate this blog to everyone, past and present, who has inspired me along the way to see the world around me a little more colorful and a lot more crafty. Create, learn, teach, inspire, share, grow, and love! May God always be our main source of inspiration and our main reason for crafting. Give God praise and glory every day for the talents you have. Always remember, God loves y'all and so do I. hugs, patty